Economy minister: Tax cuts, home-building and growth centrepieces of 2017 budget

Budapest, April 26 (MTI) – Tax cuts, the government’s home-building scheme and growth will be the centrepieces of next year’s budget, Mihály Varga, the economy minister, said in parliament on Tuesday.

Introducing the 2017 budget bill, he said that the budget would ensure that every Hungarian can take steps forward.

The government targets economic growth next year of 3.1 percent together with a budget deficit of 2.4 percent of GDP. The public debt will continue to decline, he added.

The budget contains a combined 170 billion forints (EUR 545m) of reserves in the National Protection Fund and for “extraordinary government measures”. Additionally, ministries will be required to freeze 1 percent of their budgets as “stability” reserves, adding up to 35 billion forints, he said. The reserves may only be freed up after October, if fiscal targets are met, he added.

Every area of the budget will have higher funding compared to this year, Varga said. Extra funds in the education budget will amount to 270 billion forints, health care will receive an added 167 billion forints while social security and welfare spending will have 155 billion forints more. Extra spending on culture will amount to 66 billion forints, he said.

The budget allocates 211 billion forints for home purchases subsidies.

Further, 114 billion extra will be allocated for law enforcement, 5 billion for local councils, 26 billion for judicial matters, 10 billion for foreign affairs and 51 billion for defence.